Friday, September 19, 2008
Saturn magnetizes its moon Titan
After 31 close fly-bys of the moon, the Cassini spacecraft finally flew through Titan's upper atmosphere at a time when the moon had edged out of the influence of Saturn's magnetic field.
The encounter, which took place on 13 June 2007, showed that Titan's atmosphere actually retains a memory of the magnetic field of the plasma that surrounds Saturn. This memory might last for as long as 3 hours.
"It's surprising that it stays there that long," says team member Andrew Coates of University College London. "Over long time scales, this could really help us understand how planetary atmospheres evolve."
Titan's temporary emergence fully exposes the moon to the solar wind. But the temporary magnetization of the moon's atmosphere, which produces a draped sheath of magnetic field lines, might protect it from substantial losses.
http://space.newscientist.com/article/dn14717-saturn-magnetises-its-moon-titan.html?feedId=online-news_rss20
The encounter, which took place on 13 June 2007, showed that Titan's atmosphere actually retains a memory of the magnetic field of the plasma that surrounds Saturn. This memory might last for as long as 3 hours.
"It's surprising that it stays there that long," says team member Andrew Coates of University College London. "Over long time scales, this could really help us understand how planetary atmospheres evolve."
Titan's temporary emergence fully exposes the moon to the solar wind. But the temporary magnetization of the moon's atmosphere, which produces a draped sheath of magnetic field lines, might protect it from substantial losses.
http://space.newscientist.com/article/dn14717-saturn-magnetises-its-moon-titan.html?feedId=online-news_rss20
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